Redskin

When:

Lookups spiked on October 31, 2013.

Why:

The debate about the appropriateness of the name of the NFL's Washington Redskins was back in the news following a meeting held between league officials and members of the Oneida Indian Nation, a Native American tribe based in upstate New York.

Redskin is a synonym of "Native American" or "American Indian" that is labelled "usually offensive."

The owner of the team has insisted that he won't change its name, and a poll showed that two thirds of Washingtonians said they'd prefer to keep the name. Even President Obama has weighed in on the debate, saying that he would "think about changing it."

Redskins has long been perceived by some people as an insulting word. It was listed in Merriam-Webster's first Collegiate Dictionary in 1898 as "often contemptuous."